For the past three years, Courier reporters have been given the distinctive honor of Rookie Reporter of the Year. Former reporters Melissa Chan, Maggie Hayes and Terence Cullen previously took home the title and this year, Angy Altamirano placed in the category.

Altamirano, who covers western Queens and is editor of the LIC Courier magazine, was awarded second place for her “ability to write enticing, exciting leads.”

Of her work, the judges said, “Angy has an easy-to-read style … using short sentences instead of long wordy ones to tell her story.”
Melissa, who previously covered northeast Queens for The Courier, won second place in the News Story category for her “great hard news reporting” and getting to the facts quick and with detail.

The former reporter also took home another win along with Maggie, who previously covered southeast and southwest for the newspaper. The duo placed third place for In-Depth Reporting for their “nice presentation, good writing and plenty of interesting people …”

The Courier’s staff also took home awards for Best Special Section Cover and Best Large Space Ad.

Jennifer Decio earned first place for her large space ad which judges found conveyed an elegant message. “The photos and layout sell it!” wrote the judges.

Stephen Reina placed third for his special section cover which judges described as “both dynamic and sophisticated.”

“I’m so proud of our team, which is the best in the business,” said Joshua Schneps, co-publisher of The Queens Courier. “It demonstrates the quality of what we do and the depth of talent that we have in the company.”